House Republicans defeat fair redistricting proposal

INDIANAPOLIS – State Rep. Matt Pierce (D-Bloomington) today offered a citizen-drawn, fair alternative to the GOP's gerrymandered Indiana House map proposal.

“The House map we presented today meets two important requirements. It was not drawn by legislators with the help of political insiders, and it fairly represented the current partisan balance of the state,” Pierce said.

Unlike the Republican-proposed maps, no legislators were involved in drawing the districts contained in the map that was a finalist in the Indiana Citizens Redistricting Commission's statewide competition.

“Other than legislative staff making a few minor technical tweaks to ensure the map meets legal requirements, these proposed districts were completely drawn by a citizen, avoiding the inherent conflicts-of-interest that exist when legislators draw their own districts,” Pierce said.

“This map reflects the will of Hoosier voters,” Pierce added. “According to political scientist Christopher Warshaw, Republicans can be expected to win 69 of the 100 House seats with their map despite garnering only 56% of the vote. The citizen-drawn map still gives House Republicans a few more seats than their baseline vote would suggest, but it is fairly close to the state's current political makeup.”

Highlights of the alternative House map:

• Fulfills all constitutional requirements.
• Reflects the considerations proposed by Hoosiers in statewide redistricting hearings.
• Prioritizes competitiveness by minimizing the number of wasted votes.

House Republicans defeated the proposal with a vote of 68-27.

To view the House Democrats' alternative House map proposal, click here.